Business Directories

Depa buys luxury fit-out business of German firm

Dubai, August 4, 2013

Depa, a leading interior contracting company, has acquired the assets of German-based Loher Raumexklusiv’s luxury interiors business, through its wholly-owned German subsidiary, Vedder, for an undisclosed sum.

Founded in 1931, Loher specialises in luxury interiors and bespoke furniture for yachts, aircrafts and residences. As part of the transaction, Depa acquired a substantial order book, a talented team of employees and a state-of-the-art 15,000 sq m factory with cutting-edge machinery. The company is based near Munich in Lower Bavaria, Germany.

Mohannad Sweid, CEO of Depa, said: “This acquisition is a highly complementary fit with Vedder and combining both facilities will make us one of the largest yacht interior fit-out specialists in the world.”

“Depa’s yachts business has been a strong and consistent revenue generator, highlighted by the strong order book and recent contract wins totalling Dh235 million ($64 million). The yacht building market continues to perform well and this acquisition will increase our already strong market share and allow us to derive significant business efficiencies as we incorporate the assets under Vedder’s brand.

“This acquisition also gives us a first entry point into the world of private jet interiors, which is a natural business extension. The market for luxury aircraft interiors has grown exponentially over the last few years, driven predominately by Asia and Africa, and by combining our range of capabilities and services we see this as an attractive market with genuine long-term prospects and opportunities,” he added.

Frost & Sullivan issued a market insight entitled: ‘The Global Commercial Aircraft Cabin Interiors Market’ in November 2011 which analysed the commercial aircraft cabin interior markets and forecasts the commercial aircraft cabin interior market to grow at a CAGR of 8.7 per cent with most of the revenue opportunities occurring after 2016 when new aircraft programmes are being introduced.

Furthermore, the current retrofit market is booming, fuelled by significant numbers of aircraft returning to operations after inactivity during the crisis period. – TradeArabia News Service